• Simone van der Maeden, Michiel Veldhuis, Michiel Doorman, Arthur Bakker
• September 1, 2024 – Augustus 31, 2028

The new national objectives for primary school mathematics in the Netherlands, describe a novel goal on stimulating students’ mathematical attitude. However, as little is currently known about what mathematical attitude precisely entails and how it can be stimulated, this research project aims to develop and test exemplary teaching materials that promote the mathematical attitude of primary school students.

The new national objectives for primary school mathematics in the Netherlands, describe a novel goal on stimulating students’ mathematical attitude. However, little is currently known about what mathematical attitude precisely entails or how it can effectively be stimulated. To address this, a literature study will be conducted to improve understanding of how mathematical attitude could look like in practice. Furthermore, it will be explored how students’ mathematical attitude (stimulation) is present in current intended, planned, and implemented educational practices. The findings will inform the development and testing of teaching materials aimed at fostering students’ mathematical attitude. This research contributes to the theoretical understanding of mathematical attitude and provides practical examples for educators to work on primary school students’ mathematical attitude.

This project is funded by a grant from the Dutch Ministry of Education in the context of the foundation of the Expertisepunt Rekenen-Wiskunde.

• Veerle Eggens, Arthur Bakker
• September 1, 2024 - August 31, 2027

Interdisciplinary skills are becoming increasingly important in society, but havo and vwo final exams are predominantly monodisciplinary. This research works toward guidelines for shaping interdisciplinary education in high schools.

In an increasingly complex world, the demand for interdisciplinary skills is growing. In secondary education, however, disciplines are mainly taught separately. This research focuses on the design of interdisciplinary education in senior secondary schools. This includes studying relevant literature, evaluating and improving the current interdisciplinary approach at a havo/vwo school in Amsterdam, and exchanging knowledge with other institutions that promote interdisciplinary education. The research is concluded with practical guidelines providing support for teachers and school leaders who
want to start or improve interdisciplinary education in secondary education.

This project is funded by NRO.

• Ramon de Jonge, Arthur Bakker, Sanne F. Akkerman
• September 2024 - August 2027

The interest in science education has been declining for years, despite its crucial role in individual growth and societal development. At the same time, it appears that young people attach great importance to community-relevant issues such as sustainability. With this educational design research, we aim to investigate how community engagement can be integrated into STEM lessons to foster and cultivate interest in STEM subjects.

To increase students’ interest in STEM subjects, it is essential to connect education with relevant societal themes. Community-engaged learning (CEL) offers a powerful approach by actively involving students in projects that impact their immediate environment. Within the Eco-Schools program at Hoeksch Lyceum, students collaborate with teachers to make the school and its surroundings more sustainable.

CEL is then integrated into STEM lessons, for example, through assignments that build on CEL projects. Students learn to apply formulas to calculate energy consumption, design water management systems, or analyze data from recycling initiatives. This approach makes the learning material tangible and relevant, sparks curiosity, and strengthens connections to real-world applications.

The curriculum achieves a balance between theoretical knowledge, practical skills, and social engagement. Active learning strategies, such as project-based learning and interdisciplinary collaboration, are employed to give students ownership of their learning process. By using CEL as an integral part of STEM lessons, students not only become more engaged but also develop critical skills and a deeper understanding of their role in society.

This project is funded by the NRO.

• Bas Clercx
• Supervisors: Prof. dr. C.A.M. (Carla) van Boxtel (promotor) & Dr. L.W. (Lidewij) van Gils (co-promotor)
• September 2024 - September 2028

Dutch classics teachers increasingly express a desire to integrate non-canonical texts into their teaching practices. However, practical challenges and dilemmas, such as a lack of materials and the choice between new authors and the traditional canon, hinder this ambition. This study aims to map and interpret these choices and dilemmas from both pedagogical and societal perspectives, while simultaneously developing an instrument to support teachers in selecting their curriculum.

The study consists of four components: a literature review and case studies on the canon in education; an analysis of school-based examinations and a survey of texts included in the curriculum; interviews with classics teachers; and the design of a curriculum-choice instrument. The goal of this instrument is to support and empower teachers in professional dialogue and to enhance their ability to make informed decisions when integrating both canonical and non-canonical texts into the classics curriculum.

This project is funded by Dudoc-Alfa year 2024.

• Mireille Hassemer
• Supervisors: Catherine van Beuningen, Arthur Bakker, Marrit van de Gucht
• January 2025 - December 2028

This PhD project focuses on the implementation of the proposed new curriculum for modern foreign languages in secondary education and examines how artificial intelligence (AI) can contribute to sustainable and future-oriented language education.

Within this project, research is conducted on how artificial intelligence (AI) can be integrated into the renewed curriculum for modern foreign language education (MFL) in secondary schools. This curriculum emphasizes the three core elements of language learning and teaching: communication, language awareness, and cultural awareness. The project focuses on designing teaching materials in teacher development teams, where these elements are integrated and enhanced through AI tools, while investigating the knowledge and skills required by both teachers and students for successful implementation. The project aims to improve students’ language proficiency while teaching them to critically engage with AI. By doing so, it contributes to the implementation of the new curriculum and to future-oriented MFL education, where AI serves as a valuable tool to make learning more effective and meaningful.

This project is funded by Vakdidactiek Geesteswetenschappen & Research Centre for Curriculum Studies (UvA-SLO).

• Thomas Klijnstra, Geerte Savenije, Carla van Boxtel (UvA) and Gerhard Stoel (Radboud University)
• 1 April 2020 - 1 February 2025

This research centers on conceptualizing students' reasoning regarding social problems and issues. A key aspect of this research is the development of educative curriculum materials—subject-specific) materials that both students and teachers can learn to enhance students’ reasoning, aligning with the secondary social sciences curriculum.

In social science education, students must learn to reason about social problems. This is highly relevant but also complex. Reasoning is considered a complex skill. Moreover, social problems are ill-structured; various causes and consequences, values, norms, interests, and emotions can play a role in analyzing and reasoning about social problems. Our research project aims to understand this social scientific reasoning better. First, we have operationalized and conceptualized this subject-specific reasoning. We used this conceptualization to design and validate educative curriculum materials, including rubrics, a list of reasoning flaws, sample lessons with underlying design principles, and instructional videos. We have examined how these insights and materials can be used in a teacher professionalization program.  In collaboration with CITO, we have designed formative assessment items that can measure subskills of students’ social scientific reasoning in short answer questions that can be used in social science classes. All these insights (conceptualization, educative curriculum materials, insights about teacher professionalization, and formative assessment items) contribute to relevant insights about the aim and content of the social sciences curriculum. Insights from our research project have contributed to the revised social science concept program (SLO, 2024).

This project is funded by NRO (40.5.18540.109).

• Indy Joosten, Monique Volman, Monique Verhoeven (UU), Sanne Akkerman (UU)
• September 1 2024 - August 31 2028

While adolescents have many interests that are evidenced sources for learning and engagement, they are not necessarily supported in secondary schools. This PhD research project, therefore, aims to provide insights into how adolescents’ interest pursuits can be supported in curriculum and pedagogical practices in the Netherlands.

Adolescents have many interests, defined as a person's preferred engagement with a particular object (Akkerman et al., 2020). These interests are evidenced sources for learning and engagement (Azevedo, 2011; Hidi & Renninger, 2006), yet they are not always carefully supported or complemented in secondary schools and their workings remain underexplored (Akkerman et al., 2020; Rajala et al., 2016). To better understand this, we explore in this PhD project the question of how pedagogies related to interest-oriented educational arrangements can support adolescents’ interest pursuits. The research aims to identify variations and mechanisms of curricula and pedagogies related to adolescents’ interests and explore how educators and students navigate interest-oriented education. Pedagogy is conceptualized by drawing on sociocultural theory, which emphasizes teaching and learning as dynamic arrangements rather than strictly intentional, curriculum-based activities (Azevedo, 2019). This approach recognizes that while learning can result from explicit instruction, other pedagogical arrangements such as peer learning also play a crucial role in supporting interest-driven practices (ibid). The overarching research question guides a four-part project consisting of a literature review, two ethnographic studies and a participatory action research initiative. 

This project is funded by NRO PROO, RICDE and RCCS.

References

• Akkerman, D. M., Vulperhorst, J. P., & Akkerman, S. F. (2020). A developmental extension to the multidimensional structure of interests. Journal of Educational Psychology, 112, 183–203.  
• Azevedo, F. S. (2011). Lines of practice: a practice-centered theory of interest relationships. Cognition and Instruction, 29(2), 147–184.  
• Azevedo, F. S. (2019). A pedagogy for interest development: The case of amateur astronomy practice. Learning, Culture and Social Interaction, 23, 100261. 
• Hidi, S., & Renninger, K. A. (2006). The four-phase model of interest development. Educational Psychologist, 41(2), 111–127.  
• Rajala, A., Kumpulainen, K., Hilppö, J., Paananen, M., & Lipponen, L. (2016). Connecting learning across school and out-of-school contexts: A review of pedagogical approaches. In Learning across contexts in the knowledge society(pp. 15-35). Brill Sense.